Tag Archives: Android

Now you can get free emergency alerts on your mobile phone when you’re within a disaster or emergency zone. Here’s how to enable this feature:

A. To activate for Android phones

Open your Messages app, tap Settings.

Look for Emergency Alerts, Cell Broadcast or Wireless Alerts options. Tap or slide the switch to turn it on.

Note: For some versions, you may go to Settings, More, then Emergency Broadcasts. If you are asked to add specific ID, define or input Channel 728.

B. To activate for iOS

Go to Settings, then Notifications.

Scroll down to find AMBER Alerts, Emergency Alerts, and Test Message. Tap or slide to activate.

Note: For iOS, you would need to update to its latest version (iOS 10.2 and up, carrier version SMART 27.1).

How is this all possible?

Smart Communications has invested in cell broadcast technology which allows Smart’s users within a specified location to receive timely and accurate warnings from authorized government sources in times of calamities or threats. During emergencies or calamities, mobile users should receive an emergency alert – a very loud siren-like sound will go off with a corresponding message about the emergency flashed onscreen.

Smart Communications has made it possible for agencies like Philippine Institute of Volcanic and Seismology (PHILVOLCS), the Natural Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), as well as the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) to send free warning alerts straight to Smart users’ mobile phones in accordance to RA No 10649 of 2014 aka the Free Mobile Disaster Alerts Act.

Moto G4 Plus
1. Go to Settings, then under Wireless and Networks, tap on More
2. Go to Emergency Broadcasts
3. Make sure the following items are ticked on the settings. Also, you may configure the notification settings
when you receive a cell broadcast.

Digitata found that certain Android operating systems behaved differently when receiving Cell Broadcast messages, for example Cell Broadcasts were being received as SMSs leading to fuller inboxes, the devices would beep every time one is received, the message would be displayed as a dialogue box that would need to be manually dismissed, and it would sometimes be too small or overwritten by the screen’s wallpaper making it hard to see.

Digitata needed a way to make these broadcasts consistent and solve these problems, so that their subscribers could continue receiving broadcasts in a more convenient way.

So they teamed up with Realmdigital to build a Cell Broadcast Display app for Android that displays the latest cell broadcast message in an easily read widget without sounding a notification. Their users have welcomed the app; ensuring that their subscribers won’t be disabling Cell Broadcasting messages any time soon!

The app displays the cell broadcast message (if any)sent by the mobile operator on channel 50. It works in totally offline mode, doesn’t require internet to update the cell broadcast. Sometimes operators use these to advertise their products as well.
If your country has different CB broadcast channel for area, I will obliged if you inform me.
Currently this App works as below:
1. The main screen updates the as soon as the CB broadcast is received(or in next 2 seconds).
2. Widget: To save power the widget is refreshed after 30 minutes automatically. But any way the refresh can be done using the refresh button.
As you know these cell broadcasts totally depends on the network/mobile provider. So the frequency of update/ or even receiving the message is unpredictable.
Note: Working fine on Nexus 4 (4.4.2). As I don’t have other devices, this doesn’t guarantee to work specially below 4.0(ICS version).
Requesting not to rate negative if message not received because it may be the case the network operator doesn’t support CB broadcast message.

After digging into settings menus in the Jelly Bean update that was released this week for Verizon’s Galaxy Nexus, a handful of readers noticed that a new “Cell Broadcast settings” area was now included. This new area appears to give you control over emergency alerts that could push through to your handset. For example, a child abduction notification could appear on your phone should one happen near you. I’m assuming that a notification of some sort would also pop up if say a hurricane were blowing through, if an earthquake just went down, or if some sort of terrorist activity that threaten lives was happening. You can even set your phone up to speak them out loud as they appear on your device.

We hadn’t noticed these on any other phone before, even a GSM Galaxy Nexus running Jelly Bean, and wanted to share. We aren’t sure if this is something that is only showing because this is a test build or if this is indeed going to be a new standard in Android going forward. Pretty neat, though, right?

To access the menu, head into Settings>Wireless & networks>Cell broadcasts.